The Australian government abolished the Temporary Work visa subclass 457 and replaced it with a 482 TSS visa in March 2019.
Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482) or 482 TSS visa lets an Australian employer sponsor an overseas skilled worker to fill a position as they are unable to find a suitable Australian skilled worker. Applicants of a TSS visa may also include their dependent family members such as spouse and children. Dependent family members will not have any kind of restriction on work and study in Australia. There is no maximum age restriction to lodge an application for a TSS visa (subclass 482).
There are three streams available under 482 TSS visa and the cost and processing time of each visa vary according to each stream. 482 TSS visa allows skilled workers to work in Australia under one of these three streams:
Short-term stream – This stream is for those employers who sponsor overseas skilled workers temporarily for up to two years or 4 years in case an International Trade Obligation (ITO) applies. The occupation for which applicants are applying must be present in the Short-term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL). The visa under this stream is renewable only once while the applicant is in Australia.
The visa holders under short-term stream can -
● Travel in and out of Australia as many times as they wish until the visa gets expired
● Eligible visa holders can apply for a permanent residence too.
75% of visa applications under this stream take an estimated time of 77 days to process and 90% of applications are processed within 7 months. The cost of a short term stream visa is AUD1290.
Medium-term stream – This stream allows employers to source highly skilled overseas workers for up to four years. The Hong Kong visa holder may stay up to 5 years. The occupation for which applicants are applying must be present in the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) or Regional Occupations List (ROL). Unlike short-term streams, there is no limit to the renewal of a visa. Visa holders under this stream become eligible to apply for permanent residence after spending three years in Australia.
Visa holders under the Medium-term stream can -
● Study without government assistance
● Travel to and from Australia whenever you want till your visa is valid
● Eligible visa holders can apply for a permanent residence too.
75% of visa applications under this stream take an estimated time of 4 months to process and 90% of applications are processed within 7 months. The cost of this visa is AUD2690.
Labour Agreement stream – This stream allows Australian employers to sponsor overseas workers by a labour agreement with the Department of Home Affairs. The employer has to demonstrate to the Australian government that the skills required by the job are not met by any Australian worker. Visa holders under this stream are allowed to work and live in Australia for up to a maximum of four years as per the labour agreement. Hong Kong citizens may stay up to 5 years.
Visa holders under Labour Agreement Stream can
● Study without receiving any government assistance
● Travel to and from Australia whenever they wish till their visa is valid
75% of visa applications under this stream take an estimated time of 4 months to process and 90% of applications are processed within 6 months. The visa cost under this stream is AUD2,690.
Eligibility criteria for 482 TSS visa applicants: The general requirements to apply for 482 TSS visa are as follows -
● The applicants must be nominated by an approved employer
● The occupation must be present in the Consolidated Skilled Occupations List
● TSS visa holders are eligible to work only for the nominated position and occupation and can work only for that employer who has nominated them.
● The applicants must have the required skills and qualification
● Applicants must have a minimum of 2 years of work experience in the relevant occupation
● Applicants must have a character and health certificate
● Candidate must fulfil the requirement of minimum standards of English language proficiency
Requirements for an employer to sponsor an overseas skilled worker - There is also some eligibility criteria for an Australian employer to source an overseas worker on a 482 TSS visa. The requirements expected to fulfil by an Australian employer are:
● The employers' venture must be currently legally operated in Australia
● Must have no adverse information of their business
● The employer must fulfil the salary and employment-related conditions.
● The employer may have to provide proof of Labour Market Testing if required.
Note - Before offering the position to an overseas worker, the employer must have to do Labour Market Testing to show that the business tried to find a suitably skilled Australian worker but no Australian worker could meet the requirements. The business has to hire overseas workers due to the temporary skill shortage among the Australian workers otherwise Australian workers always get priority.
Step by step 482 TSS visa application process from the applicants' side - You can easily apply for a TSS visa (subclass 482) by following these steps:
● The very first step is to check if your occupation is in the Consolidated Skilled Occupation Lists or not
● Make sure that you fulfil all the eligibility criteria as you have to provide the evidence for the same
● Get the employer nomination for you. You can apply for the TSS visa once your employer submits their application to nominate you.
● Once your application for a TSS visa is submitted, wait for the decision. In case your application gets rejected, you will be notified of the reason for the same.
● If your application is approved by the concerned authority, you will receive your visa.
Overall application process - The overall process that takes place to generate a 482 TSS visa for overseas skilled workers are as follows :
The employer applies to be a sponsor - Employer lodge an application to be a sponsor. To be able to sponsor international workers, the employer must meet the following eligibility criteria:
● Must have a legal venture operating in Australia
● Must have a standard business sponsorship (SBS)
The sponsorship of the employer is valid for a term of 5 years from the date of its approval. The cost of filling the application for being a sponsor is AUD420.
Approval of sponsorship - The employer application gets approved and now they become eligible to source overseas workers.
Nomination - The employer nominates the overseas skilled workers to fill the position in the business.
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An overseas worker applies for a TSS visa - If you have the skills required by the Australian employer, you can give your name for nomination. Once your employer nominates you, then you can apply for a 482 TSS visa.
Outcome - Upon approval, applicants can receive their visa and travel to Australia to work there.